Taranaki Iwi Claims Settlement Bill Government Bill
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Taranaki Iwi Claims Settlement Bill Government Bill Explanatory note General policy statement This Bill— • records the acknowledgements and apology given by the Crown to Taranaki Iwi in the deed of settlement (the deed) dated 5 September 2015 between the Crown and Taranaki Iwi; and • gives effect to the deed, in which the Crown and Taranaki Iwi agree to a final settlement of all Taranaki Iwi’s historical Treaty of Waitangi claims. Scope of settlement Taranaki Iwi is one of 8 iwi of the Taranaki region, with a population recorded in the 2013 Census of 6 087 members. The Taranaki Iwi area of interest stretches from Ōnu- kutaipari on the northern coast to the Ōuri Stream in the south and encompasses Mount Taranaki and the Egmont National Park. Clause 13 of this Bill defines Tarana- ki Iwi. The settlement settles all of the historical claims of Taranaki Iwi. Those claims in- clude all claims that— • are, or are founded on, a right arising— • from the Treaty of Waitangi or its principles; or • under legislation; or • at common law (including aboriginal title or customary law); or • from a fiduciary duty; or • otherwise; and • arise from, or relate to, acts or omissions before 21 September 1992— • by or on behalf of the Crown; or 115—1 2 Taranaki Iwi Claims Settlement Bill Explanatory note • by or under legislation. The Crown is released and discharged from all obligations and liabilities in respect of those claims. History of claim The first Taranaki claim in the Waitangi Tribunal (the Tribunal) was brought by the Taranaki Māori Trust Board in 1987. As a result of the inquiry, the Tribunal released an interim report called The Taranaki Report—Kaupapa Tuatahi on 11 June 1996. The report dealt with 21 claims investigated by the Tribunal between 1990 and 1995 concerning the Taranaki rohe, including the Crown’s purchase of land, the Taranaki land wars, and the confiscation of land under the New Zealand Settlements Act 1863. In 2000, hapū of Taranaki Iwi participated in the Tribunal’s urgent inquiry into the petroleum claim (Wai 796). The claim asserted that in the 19th century, and up to 1937, Taranaki Māori lost ownership of much of their traditional lands, often as a re- sult of Crown acts and policies that have since been found to have been inconsistent with the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi. The claim also asserted that the same Crown breaches resulted in the loss of petroleum resources located within that land. The Tribunal issued The Petroleum Report in 2003 and found that, prior to 1937, Māori had legal title to the petroleum in their land and a Treaty interest was created in favour of Māori for the loss of legal title to petroleum. Negotiations and deed of settlement Taranaki Iwi gave Taranaki Iwi Trust (the Trust) a mandate to negotiate a deed of settlement with the Crown by way of mandating hui, and on 26 February 2010 the Crown recognised the mandate. The Trust and the Crown signed terms of negotiation on 17 March 2010 that agreed the scope, objectives, and general procedures for the negotiations. A letter of agreement signed on 22 December 2012 by Taranaki Iwi and the Crown agreed a basis for a deed in principle. In June 2014, negotiations were paused due to a lack of agreement on how the Crown could address Taranaki Iwi’s aspirations relating to Parihaka. In December 2014, negotiations recommenced fol- lowing the establishment by the Crown, Taranaki Iwi, and Parihaka of Kawe Tutaki, a working group established to advise on how the Crown can support Parihaka to ach- ieve its aspirations. After Taranaki Iwi advised the Office of Treaty Settlements on 20 May 2015 that the Trust had agreed to initial the deed given the progress made by Kawe Tutaki, the Crown and Taranaki Iwi initialled the deed on 7 July 2015. Taranaki Iwi held a ballot to ratify the deed. Of the total eligible voting population, 25% par- ticipated in the ballot. Of those who voted, 99% supported the deed, which was signed on 5 September 2015. Governance entity Taranaki Iwi ratified their post-settlement governance entity (PSGE) between May and June 2013. Of the total eligible voting population, 32.5% participated in the ratifi- cation process. Of those who voted, 93.25% supported the establishment of Te Kāhui Explanatory note Taranaki Iwi Claims Settlement Bill 3 o Taranaki Trust as the PSGE. The PSGE was subsequently established on 24 June 2013. On settlement, the trustees of the PSGE will manage the settlement assets. Summary of settlement The deed will be the final settlement of all Taranaki Iwi’s historical Treaty of Wai- tangi claims resulting from acts or omissions by the Crown before 21 September 1992. This Bill contains provisions related to those aspects of the settlement redress that require legislation for their implementation. Other aspects of the settlement are provided for only in the deed (because they do not require legislative authority). This Bill contains the typical features of a Treaty settlement Bill as set out in the clause by clause analysis. Some of the more distinctive aspects of the Bill include— • provision for iwi representation on the Taranaki Regional Council’s Policy and Planning Committee and the Consents and Regulatory Committee to allow the iwi of Taranaki to contribute to the Council’s decision-making processes: • provision for the transfer of mandated iwi organisation (MIO) status from Tar- anaki Iwi’s existing MIO to its PSGE through the Bill (rather than through the Maori Fisheries Act 2004): • the joint vesting (with Te Atiawa) of Ngā Motu/Sugar Loaf Islands, with the Department of Conservation continuing to manage the islands and public ac- cess being maintained. Key aspects of redress provided for in the deed that do not appear in this Bill in- clude— • a relationship agreement with the Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Em- ployment (in relation to minerals, including petroleum); and • financial redress of $70 million and a cultural fund of $55,633. The benefits of the settlement will be available to all members of Taranaki Iwi, wher- ever they live. Removal of courts’ jurisdiction and of resumptive memorials Taranaki Iwi and the Crown have agreed to the removal of the jurisdiction of the courts and the Tribunal in respect of the Taranaki Iwi historical claims, the deed, the settlement redress, and this Bill (but not in respect of the interpretation or implemen- tation of the deed or the Bill) and to the removal of resumptive memorials from com- puter registers in relation to land within the right of first refusal (RFR) areas. Departmental disclosure statement The Ministry of Justice is required to prepare a disclosure statement to assist with the scrutiny of this Bill. It provides access to information about the policy development of the Bill and identifies any significant or unusual legislative features of the Bill. A copy of the statement can be found at http://legislation.govt.nz/disclosure.aspx? type=bill&subtype=government&year=2015&no=115 4 Taranaki Iwi Claims Settlement Bill Explanatory note Clause by clause analysis Clause 1 is the Title clause. Clause 2 provides that the Bill comes into force on the day after it receives the Royal assent. Part 1 Preliminary matters, acknowledgements and apology, and settlement of historical claims Clauses 3, 4, and 5 respectively set out the purpose of this Bill, state that provisions take effect on the settlement date, and provide for the Bill to bind the Crown. Clause 6 outlines the contents of the Bill. Summary of historical account, acknowledgements, and apology of the Crown Clauses 7 to 10 provide for and set out the summary of the historical account given in the deed of settlement, and the Crown’s acknowledgements and apology. Interpretation provisions Clause 11 states the general interpretation provision and clause 12 defines key terms used in the Bill. Clause 13 defines Taranaki Iwi. Clause 14 defines the historical claims that are settled by the Bill. Historical claims settled and jurisdiction of courts, etc, removed Clause 15 settles the historical claims and removes the jurisdiction of courts, tribu- nals, and other judicial bodies over the historical claims, the deed of settlement, the Bill, and the settlement redress, other than as to the interpretation or implementation of the deed and Bill. Amendment to Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 Clause 16 amends the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 to remove the jurisdiction of the Waitangi Tribunal. Resumptive memorials no longer to apply Clauses 17 and 18 provide that certain enactments do not apply to land to be vested or transferred under the Bill. Miscellaneous matters Clause 19 provides an exception to the rule against perpetuities. Clause 20 makes provision for the deed of settlement to be made publicly available by the chief executive of the Ministry of Justice. Explanatory note Taranaki Iwi Claims Settlement Bill 5 Clause 21 provides that if a provision in this Bill has the same effect as a provision in another Bill, the provisions are to be given effect to only once, as if they were the same provision. This clause anticipates the requirement for certain redress to be shared in another Taranaki Bill. Part 2 Cultural redress Subpart 1—Protocols Clauses 22 to 28 make provision for 3 protocols, a conservation protocol, a fisheries protocol, and a taonga tūturu protocol. Subpart 2—Statutory acknowledgement and deeds of recognition Clause 29 sets out the definitions applying in this subpart. Clauses 30 to 41 provide for a statutory acknowledgement to apply over the specified statutory areas. Clause 38 provides for deeds of recognition over specified statutory areas, and clauses 39 to 41 set out further provisions applying in relation to statutory acknowledgements.